This patent application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. Section 119 to Japanese Utility Model Application Number 3065446, filed Jul. 2, 1999, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
The present invention is directed to a clothes or garment hanger. More particularly, the present invention is directed to a unique clothes or garment hanger having a support rod coupled to substantially S-shaped retaining portions that are adapted to retain a garment in a fixed position and prevent or minimize the occurrence of creases in the garment.
Garment hangers are important for use in the clothes cleaning, dry cleaning, tailoring, and garment industries. Concerns among those in the clothes cleaning, dry cleaning, tailoring, and garment industries are that the garments or clothing that hang on the garment hangers do not get wrinkled, creased, or damaged and that the garments are secured on the garment hangers and do not easily slide or fall off the hangers.
Garment hangers typically comprise a hook portion adapted to suspend the hanger from a closet rod or support bar, a pair of angled arms extending in opposite directions from the hook portion and adapted to receive the shoulders of a garment such as a jacket or shirt, and a support bar or rod connecting the angled arms and adapted to support or retain a garment such as pants or trousers.
A known garment hanger is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,107,026. This patent discloses a garment hanger having a retaining clamp. However, a problem with the design of the garment hanger in this patent is that the end of the retaining clamp is exposed and curved upwardly which can create problems with catching on the garment and damaging the garment.
Another known garment hanger is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 1,689,126. This patent discloses a garment hanger having a cross bar with inwardly and upwardly inclined hooks. However, a problem with the design of the garment hanger in this patent is that the hanger is not suitable for retaining pants without belt loops or skirts without hanging loops. In addition, the hanger in this patent is not designed to hold both pants and a jacket.
Another known garment hanger is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 1,017,854. This patent discloses a garment hanger having a support bar with clamps. However, a problem with the design of the garment hanger in this patent is that the hanger requires the addition of separately formed clamps to retain skirts or pants. Thus, the manufacturing costs are increased over designs that do not require such clamps. In addition, the clamps can damage clothes by causing creases or indentations in the garments at the point that the clamp holds the garment.
Accordingly, there is a need for a new and improved garment hanger which overcomes and avoids the problems associated with known garment hangers. None of these or other known garment hangers provide all of the advantages of the present invention. Additionally, known garment hangers do not suggest or provide the present novel combination of components as disclosed and claimed herein.
The present invention satisfies these needs as well as provides a unique and nonobvious garment hanger. The advantages of the present invention over known garment hangers include, but are not limited to, the following: providing a garment hanger made of a friction-free material and having a support rod coupled to substantially S-shaped retaining portions that are adapted to securely retain a garment in a fixed position and prevent or minimize the occurrence of creases in the garment; providing a garment hanger that is sturdy and can easily hold all types of garments with or without loops, i.e., belt loops, as well as hold both a jacket and pants and provides easy removal of the pants without having to remove the jacket from the hanger; providing a garment hanger that does not require additional clips, clamps, or pins to retain garments, and thus avoiding damage to garments caused by the use of such additional devices; providing a garment hanger in which the retaining portions do not have exposed ends, thus avoiding damage to the garment; providing a unitary garment hanger that may be formed of a single wire, thus decreasing the costs of manufacturing and decreasing the complexity of the manufacturing; providing a garment hanger that may be formed of a single wire and a rolled paper support tube wherein the rolled paper support tube has a substantially friction-free, nonadhesive surface, thus avoiding the damage to garments caused by known rolled paper support tubes having adhesive surfaces; and providing a garment hanger that is easy and inexpensive to fabricate and manufacture and is not prone to damage in handling or use.
The present invention is directed to a garment hanger comprising: (a) a hook having a base; (b) first and second hanger arms extending from the base of the hook in opposite directions and angled downwardly relative to the hook; (c) an elongated horizontal support rod disposed between the first and second hanger arms, the support rod having a first end coupled to a substantially S-shaped first retaining portion, the first retaining portion continuous with the first hanger arm, and the support rod further having a second end coupled to a substantially S-shaped second retaining portion, the second retaining portion continuous with the second hanger arm. The first and second retaining portions are the same shape and configuration, are mirror images of each other, are spaced apart and opposite from each other, and are disposed between the hanger arms. The first and second retaining portions are adapted to suspend and retain a garment between the support rod and the retaining portions at several points of retention.
The hanger arms are adapted to support a different opposed shoulder of a first garment. The first and second retaining portions are adapted to retain a second garment between the support rod and the first and second retaining portions and preferably within the first garment and vertically below the first garment.
In one version of the present invention the hook, hanger arms, support rod, and retaining portions of the garment hanger are formed in one continuous unitary piece, preferably a preformed metal wire.
In another version of the present invention the hook, hanger arms, and retaining portions are formed in one continuous unitary piece, preferably a preformed metal wire, and the support rod is a second piece which is coupled to each of the retaining portions between the hanger arms. Preferably, the support rod in this version is a hollow tube comprised of rolled paper and having a substantially friction-free surface.